Hobgood makes good impression
I was able to take in the press conference for the signing of Matt Hobgood Saturday.
The first-round draft choice for the Orioles this year has all the tools, including a fastball that touches 97 - with an understanding that getting ahead in the count and mixing his pitches is what works at the highest levels.
One of the most important tools he seems to have is mental toughness. Matt's dad passed when he was just a kid, and it looks like his mom did a great job raising him. He is well mannered and very articulate.
To have all this - getting drafted and signing with a Major League team - happen to him so fast and with the media just waiting to get a piece of him, he looks like he's on top of it. Confident, not cocky. I like that a lot.
He is on his way to Bluefield, West Virginia to start his professional career. It won't be easy because it never is for a prospect.
Good luck to you Matt, and I hope to see you here in an Orioles uniform in about four to five years.
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He's getting a month and a half head start on the rest of the guys taken high in the draft which makes his signing even more likeable. I like the kid simply because he's not obsessed with money in today's greedy world,he just wants to compete.$2.5 mil isn't chump change anyway. I still bet he winds up being better than Strasburg. The Nats really wasted their pick and money on that guy I believe. They should have taken Ackley.And why waste a 1st round pick on a closer? They have a long way to go before they even need one on a consistent basis.But what do I know?
Hopefully they'll send him to Hawaii in the off-season. That, plus his Bluefield time, might give him enough experience to compete with a full-season club-Delmarva next year.
I've seen this kids fastball clocked in the 93-95 range, 98, and now 97. I'm not sure what to believe. It really doesn't matter to me. We are seeing in Bergesen the qualities that matter the most at this level. Work fast, throw strikes, make sure those strikes have movement, keep the ball down, trust your defense, don't give free passes (walks). If he can do those things then 93 is perfectly sufficient.
i live in tazewell near bluefield so I will get a chance to see him throw, that is exciting